


Nightmare

by NoblehouseofTargaryen (Captain_Shep)



Category: Dragon Age, Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Angst and Fluf, F/M, Fluffy, Nightmares, Worried Cullen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-17
Updated: 2015-03-17
Packaged: 2018-03-18 07:25:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3561161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Captain_Shep/pseuds/NoblehouseofTargaryen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Trevelyan has a nightmare and Cullen's there to help</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nightmare

Cullen reaches for another stack of papers, sighing deeply as he reaches back to rub his neck, trying to force the dull ache that had started at the back of his skull to dissipate. He rustled the reports, trying to put off looking at them for a moment longer before he looks down, reading over Leliana’s slanted cursive, smiling a little at Ellandra’s escapades in Crestwood.

He jumps, reaching for his sword as two feet slam down onto his desk. Cole stands to his full height, his eyes fevered as he scans the room, seeing Cullen breathing heavily near his armour stand. Cullen’s stomach instantly drops, fear seizing his throat as Cole’s frightened eyes meet his own.

“Dark, dank, walls closing in, the airs thick, crushing, always crushing, lungs aching, burning for a respite that never comes. I hear their laughter, the crack of the whip, then my whimper as it strikes, blood, bright, burning, bursting forth from my back, soft drips on the floor. More Laughter - always laughter, they move closer, where is he, why isn’t he here he should be here.” Cole’s voice trembles, but his body visibly relaxes as Cullen pushes away from the wall, sprinting out of his office and vaulting over the battlements onto the stairs.

He pounds through the rotunda, ignoring Solas’ wide eyed look of concern as he shoves open the main door, sprinting up the stairs that will lead him to her. His heart pounds furiously in his chest, hands trembling as he takes the stairs two at a time. The nightmares had been getting worse for weeks now, never offering her a respite throughout her nights.

They’d been taking their toll, dark circles formed beneath her eyes, now bloodshot, her skin was sunken, paler than she usually was from lack of sleep. He worried constantly, she slept better when he was there, but he feared for her whenever she left Skyhold, sending letters back and forth constantly to assure himself that she’d be okay.

He pushed open the door to their quarters, hearing her screams of horror, her body twisting and thrashing between the sheets. He runs to her, grabbing her hands in one hand to hold her steady, before he lays a hand on her cheek, calling out her name to get her to awaken. She stops thrashing after a while, but soft whimpers leave her every so often, her brows furrowed in agony as she shifts slightly, a droplet of sweat rolling down her temple.

He leans down to her clammy skin, pressing a kiss to her forehead, then her cheeks, nose, anywhere he can reach to try to calm her. All the while he whispers sweet nothings to her, trying to soothe her with his voice as he’d done so many times before, as she’d done for him. They both relied on one another to get through the nightmares, holding each other tightly to stop from drifting away into painful memories.

Her eyes flash open with a gasp, grabbing his hand as she sits up, tears staining her cheeks as she gasps for breath, trying to push past the fever of the nightmare. Her ice like eyes meet his, full of tears as she takes a deep shuddering breath, her bottom lip trembling. He feels his heart split, he hurts for her, for everything that was done to her in the Circle, she relives the solitary confinement, the whippings delivered to her at the hand of the Knight-Captain.

He feels white hot rage whenever he thinks of it.

She breaks him from his thoughts by throwing herself into his arms with a sob, her shoulders trembling as she presses her cheek into the furs around his shoulders. His arms instantly wrap around her, shifting backwards till his laying against the headboard with her curled in his lap, still sobbing as he rubs his hand up and down her back, pressing kisses into her hair as she cries.

He doesn’t speak and neither does she, she’s never been one for talking during moments like these, and he understood. She simply needed to know he was there, that he wasn’t going anywhere and his comforting presence. He smiles as she wriggles closer, silently asking for him to tighten his hold on her. He presses another kiss into her long hair, undone from its usual tight bun and flowing down her back to her waist, and obliges.

They lay there together until she stops crying, when she’s stopped, he turns her gently to sit between his legs, his practised fingers running through her hair to create a long braid, soothingly crossing the strands as he murmurs silly things he saw during his day, pulling a laugh or two from her at certain points.

When he lays the braid down over her shoulder she turns, eyes still wet with tears but much lighter now, she leans forward to press a chaste kiss to his lips, smiling against his skin when she turns to press another to his cheek.

“Thank you.” she whispers reverently, before she turns and lays back down against his chest, reaching up to run her fingers through his curls.


End file.
